Psychology 3393—Experimental Projects Dr.

Shayla Holub
Fall, 2005:Mon & Wed, 2:00-3:15, GR 4.301

Experimental Projects is the final course in the quantitative methods sequence and fulfills the
advanced writing requirement for Psychology majors. The primary goal of this course is to help
students attain the tools to become researchers in Psychology and related fields. Specifically,
students will learn how to: 1) become better consumers of research, 2) design and conduct
research studies, and 3) effectively share research findings with others. Additional course goals
include promoting independent and critical thinking, developing students’ abilities to
communicate more effectively, and giving students greater appreciation for statistics, research
methods and Psychology as a science.

Date Topics Required Readings

8/22 Introduction to course. Why do research? Basic steps in
the research process. Generating ideas and research
questions.
8/24 Psychology as a science. The scientific method, theories Stanovich, 2004- Chapter 1.
and hypothesis testing. Writing research questions and Psychology is Alive and Well (And
hypotheses. Being a good consumer of research. Doing Fine Among the Sciences)

8/29 Identifying constructs, variables. Using operational Martin, 2004- Chapter 1.

definitions. Introduction to types of research designs. How to Make Orderly Observations

8/31 Issues in measurement. Pitfalls in study design. Pelham & Blanton, 2003. Chapter 3.
Begin class research project. Moving from Fact to Truth: Validity,
Reliability and Measurement

9/5 Labor Day—No Class

9/7 Library presentation—details will be given in class.

9/12 Intro to APA style. Grammar and style. American Psychological Association,
Introduction to writing a literature review. 2001- Chapter 2.
In-class discussion of literature for class project.
Introduction to writing a methods section.
9/14 Review of data analysis techniques. Introduction to Myers & Hansen, 2005- Chapter 14.
writing a results section. Analyzing Results

9/19 Creating tables and figures. Discussion sections. Wright & Williams, 2003.

9/21 Titles, abstracts, footnotes, appendices and references. American Psychological Association,
2001- p. 10-30
9/26 Ethical treatment of participants. Ethics in science. Hurley & Underwood, 2002.

9/28 Surveys, Interviews, and Observations Reading TBA

10/3 Surveys, Interviews, and Observations (cont.)

Introduction to writing your research proposal.

10/5 *Catch-up day (if needed). Individual appointments

10/10 *Individual appointments
10/12 *Individual appointments
10/17 *Individual appointments
10/19 Intro to using SPSS to analyze data.
10/24 More practice with SPSS.
10/26 *In-class help with data analysis
10/31 *In-class help with data analysis
11/2 *Individual appointments
11/7 *Individual appointments
11/9 Choosing an audience for your work. Sternberg, 2003- Chapter 11.
Presenting your work orally. Submitting a Paper to a Journal.

11/14 Oral Presentations of Final Papers

11/16 Oral Presentations of Final Papers
11/21 Oral Presentations of Final Papers
11/23 Catch-up day
11/28 Last Day of Class—Final Papers Due by 5:00
12/5 NO FINAL. Project II paper returned. Stop by Dr. Holub’s office during the final exam time if you
would like to pick up your paper.

Course Expectations:
Students are expected to come to class prepared, having read the assigned readings for the day.
Please complete the assigned readings before class, so that you can ask questions and be
prepared for the day’s lecture. Active participation in this course is part of your grade.

All assignments turned in for this class must be proofread, typed, and on time!!! No exceptions!
All assignments will lose one letter grade per day that they are late. Grades will also be lowered
one letter grade for assignments that are not typed.

It is expected that students’ work is their own, and papers are written in their own words.
Scholastic dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration) is NOT allowed. You
should read and understand UTD’s policies at:
http://www.utdallas.edu/judicialaffairs/UTDJudicialAffairs-AvoidDishonesty.html

Course Readings:
There is no formal textbook for this course. However, readings have been assigned as part of
your homework for most class periods. The assigned readings do not necessarily provide
comprehensive information about the topic du jour, but instead were selected to peak your
interest in that topic. Reading these book chapters and articles will also help you to be an active
participant in class discussions, as well.

Students will be responsible for acquiring these readings from Blackboard, electronic library
reserve or from the regular library reserves. Please note that readings may not be accessible from
all these sources. Check Blackboard first! If readings are not on Blackboard, a notice will be
posted to Blackboard which tells you where you can obtain the reading.

Throughout the course of the semester, additional resources may also be placed on reserve and
on Blackboard. These are not assigned class readings, but you may find them helpful for better
understanding the material. A list of these supplemental materials will be posted on Blackboard.
If you do not already have one, you should purchase a copy of the Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association, 5th Edition. This is a very useful resource for anyone
writing papers or research reports in Psychology or related fields.

Course Assessment:
I am most concerned that students in this course gain skills that will help them be productive in
their future roles, whether they choose to go to graduate school or start working in the field.
Nevertheless, some method for quantitative assessment of student learning is required. Thus,
points will be distributed in the following ways (100 points total for the class):
Homework assignments, quizzes, and class participation- 15
Components of class project- 15
Final write-up of class project- 15
Independent research proposal- 20
Final independent research paper- 25
Oral presentation of research paper- 10

Details about the projects and assignments, including expectations and timelines will be coming
soon. Final grades will be calculated as follows: A= 90% and above, B= 80%-89%, C= 70%-
79%, D= 60-69& and F= below 60%.

Class Attendance:
1) I cannot provide detailed notes for missed classes. If you miss a class, please get the notes
from another student.
2) Class attendance will be taken at 2 random points during the semester. You will obtain 1
point of extra credit (added to your final grade) for being present on that day. Please note
that these points can make a huge difference to your final grade (e.g., if your final grade
is 88%, those 2 attendance points will give you an A instead of a B). Please let me know
in advance of any religious holidays that you may be celebrating as to still receive credit
on those days. Attendance will not be taken on days marked with an *.

Useful Information:
1) Dr. Holub’s office is in GR, 4.822. My office hours are Monday and Tuesday from 3:30
to 4:30 and by appointment. I can also be reached by e-mail at sholub@utdallas.edu and
phone at (972) 883-4473. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions,
comments or concerns you may have about this class.
2) The teaching assistant for this class is Kathleen de la Fuente. Her office hours will be ___
to ___ on ______. Her office is located in _________. You can contact her through e-
mail at katdlf@utdallas.edu.
3) The topics listed on the syllabus are general ideas about what will comprise that day’s
lecture. However, I reserve the right to change lecture topics if more time is needed on a
topic or based on class interest. Additional required readings may also be added.
4) Please do not forget to turn off cell phones and pagers during class lectures, as they can
be a distraction to your fellow classmates.
5) If you have a disability and would like to receive academic accommodations, please
contact someone in Disability Services, if you have not already done so. The link to their
website is: http://www.utdallas.edu/student/slife/hcsvc.html
6) As per University policy, all student e-mail correspondence must be sent through their
UTD account.
7) Information about add/drop dates can be found at:
http://www.utdallas.edu/student/registrar/calendar/ or you can see the instructor.
 References

American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological

Association (5th ed.). Washington, D.C.: Author.

Hurley, J. C., & Underwood, M. K. (2002). Children’s understanding of their research rights

before and after debriefing: Informed assent, confidentiality, and stopping participation.

Child Development, 73, 132-143.

Martin, D. W. (2004). Doing psychology experiments (6th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Pelham, B. W., & Blanton, H. (2003). Conducting research in psychology: Measuring the weight

of smoke (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Stanovich, K. E. (2004). How to think straight about psychology (7th ed.). New York: Allyn &

Bacon.

Sternberg, R. J. (2003). The psychologist’s companion (4th ed.). Cambridge, MA. Cambridge

University Press.

Wright, D. B., & Williams, S. (2003). How to…Produce a bad results section. The Psychologist,

16, 646-648.